1/2 priced restaurant gift certificates

[Foodie-Girl]

Tighe, I just called El Gaucho and they said no problem using more than one gift certificate. We'll try them out on Thursday !

[Foodie-Girl]

So far, so very, very good !

Ristorante Pellini, 28th floor of the Seattle Renaissance Hotel. The view would be enough to bring me back again...but the food was sublime.

We shared the following: Carpaccio, Haricot Vert Salad, Agnolotti Piemontesi, Fresh, Wild Salmon and Gelato.

Every dish was perfectly perpared and the service flawless.

To be honest I'd never heard or read anything about this restaurant and I was more than pleasantly surprised.

These 1/2 price gift certificates are (I believe) a great way to try some new places for a very resonable cost.

We'll be back !

[Susansea2003]

Oh no! Just read in the P-I this morning that Walter Pisano left Troiani! And I just received my half off gift certificate in the mail. Sounds like it might be differences over food quality vs. fancy presentation.... argh.

Here's the article:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/180947_...=1&searchdiff=1

[Schielke]

Yeah, I saw that too and also currently hold a certificate. I suppose I will still try it out and give them the benefit of the doubt, but it doesn't make me feel warm and fuzzy.

[tighe]

Oh no! Just read in the P-I this morning that Walter Pisano left Troiani! And I just received my half off gift certificate in the mail. Sounds like it might be differences over food quality vs. fancy presentation.... argh.

Here's the article:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/180947_...=1&searchdiff=1

At least it saves me from feeling like I should try Troiani...

"El Gouge-o does Italian" is significantly less compelling than "former Tulio chef does up-scale"

[Schielke]

Does anybody know if Troiani will honor the certificates for wine?

[tsquare]

Oh no! Just read in the P-I this morning that Walter Pisano left Troiani! And I just received my half off gift certificate in the mail. Sounds like it might be differences over food quality vs. fancy presentation.... argh.

Here's the article:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/180947_...=1&searchdiff=1

Or keeping a restaurant profitable (and open) versus a chef-artist?

[richards1052]

Some familiar names, but no details on if there are time or day restrictions.

purchase here

Also, some info on winning free dinners for two.

Are there restrictions on how long they'll (i.e. the restaurant) honor the certificate after purchase?

[tighe]

Some familiar names, but no details on if there are time or day restrictions.

purchase here

Also, some info on winning free dinners for two.

Are there restrictions on how long they'll (i.e. the restaurant) honor the certificate after purchase?

I believe the new state law that prohibits expiration dates on gift certificates applies in this case....

[MsRamsey]

Are there restrictions on how long they'll (i.e. the restaurant) honor the certificate after purchase?

Gift certificates purchased after July 1st cannot expire due to Washington's new gift certificate law.

[tighe]

Are there restrictions on how long they'll (i.e. the restaurant) honor the certificate after purchase?

Gift certificates purchased after July 1st cannot expire due to Washington's new gift certificate law.

Too slow!

[tsquare]

Are there restrictions on how long they'll (i.e. the restaurant) honor the certificate after purchase?

Gift certificates purchased after July 1st cannot expire due to Washington's new gift certificate law.

Too slow!

The Troiani certificate listed an expiration date of 1 year from purchase.

The law exempts some certificates - I believe promotional (like these) and fund raisers.

[dubkat]

Does anybody know if Troiani will honor the certificates for wine?

We used our Troiani gift certificate last night and it appears they will honor it for drinks/wine. We mentioned that we had a gift certificate and he said we were well on our way to spending it with the drinks we had ordered. We ended up going over the $100 dollars with our food orders but it did seem like they don't care what you spend your certificate on.

[ScorchedPalate]

Does anybody know if Troiani will honor the certificates for wine?

We used our Troiani gift certificate last night and it appears they will honor it for drinks/wine. We mentioned that we had a gift certificate and he said we were well on our way to spending it with the drinks we had ordered. We ended up going over the $100 dollars with our food orders but it did seem like they don't care what you spend your certificate on.

How was Troiani?

I'm anxious to hear how they're faring without Walter Piasno, especially given that he grumbled to Penelope Corcoran last week that the other partners wanted to focus "more about the overall experience (and less about the food)."

~A

[Schielke]

Katie and I used our Troiani certificate and had a very nice time. They seem to be reacting to the loss of their chef though because the new chef (dont know if he was 2nd in command or brand new) came out when the entrees to Introduce himself and say "Thank you for coming".

The food was very nice:

I had:

Charcoal grilled escarole salad with warm pancetta dressing, aged ricotta and quail egg, flamed grappa.- Pretty tasty but somewhat difficult to eat.

Crab raviolo Dungeness crab, spinach and parmesan with herb bechamela- Very rich for a seafood dish, but a winner. Intense crab flavor.

Rosemary pressed rib chop with olive oil, sea salt, preserved lemons and parsley- Beautiful piece of beef, the preserved lemons added a lot to this dish. I might wish to have a little mroe peppery EVOO though.

Peach Tart- pretty tasty, but it just din't pop with that great fresh peach taste.

Katie had:

Fresh spaghetti slow cooked tomato sauce, prosciutto and asiago- Solid Spaghetti, bright flavorful sauce. Katie liked it.

Braised Short Ribs- Good flavor, but the short ribs could have been trimmed just a shade. Still a very good dish.

Cannoli- I thought this was the biggest dissapointment of the evening. The filling was way to solid and the shell was more cookie like than crispy/flaky. Not a cannoli in my opinion.

Overall, we had a very good experience, but cannot compare it to how they were before. I would guess that they have not lost much if any at all. I did not notice many things that would seem to be caused from lack of guidance in the kitchen.

My one main complaint about the whole experience was the price of everything. I think that I would be more excited to go back if the menu was 10-15% cheaper.

Ben

[Susansea2003]

Finally used our gift certificate for Troiani last night & I must say I was underwhelmed by the food & glad we didn't pay full price. Here's our menu:

Olives, olive oil, sundried tomatoes & bread were brought out while we read the menu. The olives (of various sizes & shapes) were delicious.

Grilled calamari with tomatoes, mint & avocado -- the squid was nicely grilled in that it was quite tender, but both my DH & had one piece that tasted fishy & we just didn't like it much. The mint just didn't work for me - it seemed odd with the squid.

Pappardelle with wild boar Bolognese -- this was the biggest hit. The pasta was silky, sauce earthy & flavorful. We both loved this.

Roasted Salmon with leeks (1/2 portion): Really not very good. Strangely fishy. Also, not cooked medium rare as the waiter had said it would be. The leeks seemed tasteless.

Lamb rib chops with parmesan crust (1/2 portion): This was tasty, the lamb tender, but nothing spectacular. The parmesan crust seemed a bit too salty. At this price, i expected something better - we waxed nostalgic about a simply wonderful, meltingly tender and delicious lamb shank we had some years ago at the now-defunct Brie & Bordeaux. No comparison.

Sides of Sauteed Broccoli Rabe (tasty, nicely crisp & a bit spicy), & Polenta (pleasantly cheesy but nothing wonderful).

Chocolate torte with mocha gelato. Gelato was smooth and delicious. The torte was not at all rich or particularly chocolately. I had no desire to finish it.

Panna Cotta with pine nuts & lemon shortbread: Panna cotta was silky & light & the pine nuts were a delicious garnish. Shortbread was overly lemony.

We had a 1991 Antinori Chianti recommended by the waiter. It was good, but seemed overpriced at $42 a bottle (and that was one of the cheaper wines).

In sum: the food at Troiani is not bad, but it's not particularly good, either. At this price, I would expect something special & instead I felt this was not really better than many an average run of the mill hotel-type restaurant (and it's not in a hotel).

Atmosphere: Very dark, clubby feeling. It was also too noisy for my taste.

Service: Our waiter was attentive, but perhaps a little more informal than I'd expect in this expensive of a restaurant. We had to laugh at the apparent attempt to provide us with a pseudo-Italian experience. The first time the bus boy came to the table to clear dishes, he said, "Finito?" to us. The 2nd time, some minutes later, it was "Finished?" Then, finally, another bus person said, "All finito with that?"

Susan

[little ms foodie]

Finally used our gift certificate for Troiani last night

Susan

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Susan we were at Troiani on Fri as well!! My Report

Wendy